Means providing a holding device

ABSTRACT

A holding device comprising first and second generally parallel rigid plates and a pad of resilient material sandwiched between the plates, the plates being bonded to opposite sides of the pad. Thus, the plates are resiliently connected for slight relative movement. One of the two plates may be split into at least two portions, each of which is resiliently connected to the other plate. The two portions provide jaws for gripping parts.

United States ?atent Lester A. Morgan 28 W. Main St., New Palestine,Ind. 46163 825,669

May 19, 1969 Aug. 17, 1971 Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented MEANSPROVIDING A HOLDING DEVICE 12 Claims, 10 Drawing Figs. U.S. Cl 269/275,24/263 R, 248/316 Int. Cl B25b 1/02, B25b 1/24 Field of Search 269/271,

273, 274, 275, 277, 278, 317; 24/262, 263, 263 HW, 263 LL, 263.5 D, 263LS, 263.3, 263.4, 263

SB; 248/316 A; 21 1/41 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS303,647 8/1884 King 269/278 x 2,346,706 4/1944 Stoner. 279/46 2,796,7876/1957 Aske 269/274 3,107,716 10/1963 Wehmeyer. 269/274 X 3,236,5162/1966 Young 269/252 Primary ExaminerAndrew R. .luhasz AssistantExaminerDonald D. Evenson Attorney- Hood, Gust, Irish, Lundy & CoffeyABSTRACT: A holding device comprising first and second generallyparallel rigid plates and a pad of resilient material sandwiched betweenthe plates, the plates being bonded to opposite sides of the pad. Thus,the plates are resiliently connected for slight relative movement. Oneof the two plates may be split into at least two portions, each of whichis resiliently connected to the other plate. The two portions providejaws for gripping parts.

PATENTEUAuamsn 3,599,961

SHEEI 1 (1F 2 Fig. 2

VENTOR LEST A. MORGAN ATTORNEYS PATENTED AUG! 7|97| 3,599,961

sum 2 OF 2 INVENTOR. LESTER A. MORGAN MEANS PROVIDING A HOLDHNG DEVICEIt is a primary object of my invention to provide means which canreadily be formed into a holding device and a method for forming aholding device.

It is my concept to provide mill lengths of a composite bar tomachineshops and factories, which composite bar can be cut into small sectionsas desired and each section can then readily be converted into a holdingdevice having desirable properties. My preferred composite bar includesa first metal bar or strip of metal, a second metal bar or strip ofmetal, the first bar being parallel to the second and superposedrelative thereto. These two bars are held together by a flat strip ofresilient material, such as neoprene. Specifically, the strip ofresilient material is sandwiched between the bars and the facingsurfaces of the bars are bonded to the opposite sides of the strip. Whena section of the composite bar is cut off, the section comprises a firstrigid plate, a second rigid plate, and a pad of resilient materialsandwiched between and bonded to the plates. Because of the resiliencyof this pad between the plates, the plates are resiliently connected forslight relative movement. Generally, if one of the plates is heldrigidly, the other plate can be shifted slightly in a plane which isgenerally parallel to the rigidly held plate. The amount which one platewill move relative to the other plate depends, of course, on thethickness and the nature of the resilient pad sandwiched between theplates.

I have discovered that the composite bar of my invention can be readilyand easily cut into sections and that each section can then be readilyand easily converted into a holding device by simple machiningoperations. The holding devices produced with the composite bar utilizethe resiliency of the pad sandwiched between the plates of a section ofthe bar.

The method of my invention, therefore, comprises the steps of providingsuch a composite bar including a pair of elongated, parallel andsuperposed rigid bars with an elongated resilient strip sandwichedbetween the bars and bonded to the facing surfaces thereof, cutting thecomposite bar to the desired length to provide a section thereof,cutting one of the rigid bars of the section into at least two portions,each of which is resiliently movable relative to the other portion andrelative to the other rigid bar of the section. The method may furtherinclude the step of cutting the one rigid bar to provide a socket forreceiving a part and so that each of the portions provides a perimetralportion of the socket. This method will be more fully discussed as thisdescription progresses.

In this description and in the claims appended hereto, the terms rigidplate" and bars are to be considered synonymous. That is, the holdingdevice of my invention comprises at least two rigid plates or two rigidbars between which a resilient pad is sandwiched. Further, the terms-apad of resilient material is to be considered as any type of rubber orrubberlike pad or strip. Still further, the term bonded is to beconsidered as any type of connection between a rigid member, such as ametal bar, and a resilient member, such as a rubber or rubberlike pad.

To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, my invention maybe embodied in the forms illustrated in the accompanying drawings anddescribed herein, attention being called to the fact, however, that thedrawings and description are illustrative only, and that change may bemade in the specific constructions illustrated and described or in thespecific steps stated, so long as the scope of the appended claims isnot violated. In the drawings:

FIG. l is a fragmentary perspective view of the composite bar of myinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a simple holding device constructed fromthe bar of FIG. I;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of the holding device of FIG. 2disposed in a conventional vise;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a holding device similar to that shown inFIG. 2, except that the part is gripped and snugly held between twoportions of the resilient pad;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view of another holding device showing themanner in which the device may be formed to hold irregularly shapedparts;

FIG. 6 is an elevational view of another holding device which isproportioned and arranged to serve as a resiliently expansible gripper;

FIG. '7 is a perspective view of a holding device utilizing threadedmeans for drawing its jaws together;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another holding device which utilizesthreaded means for drawing its jaws together;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a holding device, the jaws of which areformed to engage an irregularly shaped sheet metal part; and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a holding device which is proportionedand arranged to hold cylindrical objects.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIG. 1, it will beseen that I have illustrated a section of a composite bar 10 comprisingan upper bar 12 and a lower bar 14 and a resilient strip 16 sandwichedbetween the bars. This composite bar 10 will preferably be provided inmill lengths. The bars 12 and 114 are elongated and fiat and parallelwith the upper bar 12 being superposed above the lower bar 14. Theresilient strip 16 is likewise elongated and flat and preferably of thesame width as the upper and lower bars 12 and 14. The bar 14 is bondedto the underneath side of the strip 16 and the bar 12 is bonded to theupper side of the strip 16.

In some cases, I prefer that the bar 14 be cold-rolled steel and thatthe bar 12 be aluminum. In such a case, I prefer that the strip 16 be,for instance, 6575 durometer neoprene rubber which is heat bonded withstandard vulcanizing techniques to the bars 12 and 14. Such bondingtechniques are well known and do not need to be discussed, in detail, inthis description. The lower steel bar 14 can, of course, be used withmagnetic chucks or holding devices conventionally provided on machiningsystems. The upper aluminum bar 12 is easy to machine and will not rustduring storage.

The composite bar 10 may be provided in varying widths and thicknesses.For instance, each of the bars 12 and 14 may be one-fourth inch thickwhile the strip 16 is one-sixteenth inch thick. This thickness of thestrip 16 will permit a small section of the bar 12 to be moved slightlyrelative to the bar ll4. That is, if a small section of the compositebar 10 is cut from the bar, the upper bar 12 of this small section canmove slightly relative to the lower bar 14 of the section. Generally,such a movement will occur in a plane which is generally parallel-to theplate 14.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, an embodiment of my holding device 20will be discussed. This holding device 20 comprises a first rigid plate22, a second rigid plate 24 and a pad 26 of resilient materialsandwiched between the plates, the plates being bonded to opposite sidesof the pad. The plate 24 is elongated and the plate 22 and pad 26 aredisposed at or adjacent one end portion of the plate 24. A third plate28 and resilient pad 30 are disposed at the opposite end portion of thesecond plate 24 as illustrated. The third plate 28 is parallel to theplates 22, 24 and the plate 22 and the said opposite end portion of theplate 24 are bonded to opposite sides of the pad 30. The facing edges ofthe plates 22, 28 provide jaws 32, 34 for receiving parts Ptherebetween.

The plate 28 extends outwardly from the adjacent end edge of the plate24 by a predetermined amount as indicated at 36. Thus, when the device20 is placed in a conventional vise, such as indicated at 38, with thejaws of the vise arranged to close on the ends of the plate 24, themaximum amount of movement of the third plate 28 toward the first plate22, i.e., the closing of the jaws 32, 34, will be equal to thispredetermined amount 36. This is best seen in FIG. 3. In this manner, Ican control the force with which a part P is gripped by the jaws 32, 34.If a part P is proportioned and designed so that it cannot be or shouldnot be compressed beyond a predetermined amount, I can establish this bycontrolling the dimension indicated at 36. As the jaws of the vise 38tighten against the ends of the plate 24, the plate 28 will move adistance equal to the dimension indicated at 36.

By the practice of the method of my invention, the composite bar can beused to fabricate the holding device by simple machining operations.That is, the plate 24 can be a portion of the bar 14, the plates 22, 28can be portions of the bar 12 and the pads 26, 30 can be portions of theresilient strip 16. The jaws 32, 34 may be formed by machining atransverse slot through the bar 12 and the strip 16 to provide theplates 22, 28 and the pads 26, 30. The offset dimension 36 may beestablished simply by machining a predetermined amount off the bar 14.Thus, the device 20 can be provided simply by cutting off a section ofthe composite bar 10 to the total length of the device 20 and thenmaking a first cut to provide the jaws 32, 34 and the space between thepads 26, 30 and another cut to provide the offset dimension 36.Preferably, the cut which is made to provide the spacing between thejaws 32, 34 will be just slightly greater, in the order of a fewthousandths, than the size of the pan P to be disposed between the jaws.Thus, in order securely to clamp the part P, it will only be necessaryto move the plate 28 slightly relative to the plate 22. This slightmovement, of course, can be controlled by controlling the dimensionindicated at 36.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a holding device 20, similar to the device 20,will be discussed. The device 20' is proportioned and designed to engagethe part P with the inner edges of the pads 26, 30. Specifically, theinner edge of the pad 30 extends inwardly from the jaw 32 by an amountindicated at 40 and the inner edge of the pad 26 extends inwardly fromthe jaw 34 by an amount indicated at 42. Thus, when a part P is disposedbetween these inner edges of the pads 26, 30 and the plates 22, 28 aremoved inwardly as indicated by the arrows 44, 46 the part will be snuglyengaged by the pads 26, 30.

The plate 28 extends outwardly from the left-hand end (FIG. 4) of theplate 24 by an amount indicated at 36 and the plate 22 extends outwardlyfrom the right-hand end of the plate 24 by an amount indicated at 36'.Thus, when the device 20' is placed in a conventional vise with the jawsof the vise arranged to close on the ends of the plate 24, the maximummovement of the plates 22, 28 will be determined by the dimensions 36,36. The device 20 is particularly suited for holding frail parts, suchas thin-walled plastic parts and the like, which should not be heldtightly by rigid members such as the jaws 32.

Referring now to FIG. 5, another of my devices 20 will be discussed. Thedifference between device 20" and the devices 20, 20 is that the jaw 32'is formed with a cutout and the jaw 34' is formed with another cutout,these cutouts being arranged to provide a socket 48 for receiving anirregularly shaped part. The cutouts in the jaws 32, 34 are merelyillustrative and it will be appreciated that any desired portion of asocket perimeter can be produced by machining a contour corresponding tothat portion into the plates 22, 28'.

Referring now to FIG. 6, my illustrative holding device 50 will bediscussed. This device 50 is arranged to provide resiliently expansiblejaws so that a part can be held without the use ofa vise, such asindicated at 38 in FIG. 3. The device 50 comprises a first plate 52, asecond plate 54 and a pad 56 sandwiched between these plates. The device50 also includes a third plate 58 and pad 60 disposed at the oppositeend of the plate 54 with the inner edges of the plates 52, 58 arrangedto provide jaws as indicated at 62, 64. The plate 54 can be fastened toa machine table or the like by means such as the illustrated screws 66,68. Further, the edges of the pads 56, 60 adjacent the jaws 62, 64 canbe undercut as indicated at 70, 72. Thus, a part may be shoved betweenthe jaws 62, 64 which will expand to receive the part and then closeagainst the part securely to hold it in position upon the plate 54.

Referring now to FIG. 7, another holding device 80 will be discussed.This device 80 comprises a first plate 82 disposed adjacent one end of asecond plate 84 and a pad 86 sandwiched between these plates. A thirdplate 88 is disposed adjacent the opposite end of the second plate 84and a pad 90 is sandwiched between the plate 88 and the said oppositeend. The inner edges of these plates 82, 88, therefore, provide inwardlyfacing jaws as indicated at 92, 94. In this device 80, I

prefer to provide threaded fastening elements, such as indicated at 96,98 for drawing the jaws 92, 94 together to grip a part receivedtherebetween.

Referring now to FIG. 8, another illustrative device 100 will bediscussed. This device 100 comprises a first plate 102 extending alongone edge portion of a second plate 104 with a pad, such as indicated at106, sandwiched therebetween and a third plate extending along theopposite edge portion of the plate 104 with a pad sandwichedtherebetween. Each of these two plates 102, 108 are formed with cutoutsas indicated at 112, 114 to provide a socket 116 for receiving a partadjacent one end portion of the plate 104. I then provide a threadedfastening element such as indicated at 118 for expanding and closingthis socket 116 as indicated by the arrow 120.

Referring now to FIG. 9, it will be seen that l have illustrated adevice which comprises a first plate 132 disposed above a second plate134 and a pad 136 sandwiched between these two plates. The device 130also includes a third plate 138 disposed above a portion of the plate134 and a pad 140 sandwiched between these plates. It will beappreciated that the plates 132, 138 were originally one section of abar 14 of a composite bar 10 and that the plates were separated byproviding the irregularly shaped cut as indicated at 142. Thisirregularly shaped cut 142, which may be provided with a pantograph-typemill, forms an irregularly shaped gripping edge. For instance, when itis desired to hold securely a part having an irregularly shaped profile,the upper plate of a holding device can be separated by a cutcorresponding to that profile. The device 30, which may be quite lengthyin some cases, is ideally suited for holding irregularly shaped sheetmetal objects.

Referring now to FIG. 10, it will be seen that I have illustrated adevice comprising a baseplate 152 and four upper plates 154, 156, 158,with a resilient pad 162 sandwiched between each upper plate and thebaseplate. Each upper plate 154, 156, 158, 160 provides a perimetralsection 164 of a socket for receiving a part. The baseplate 152 may beprovided with mounting holes as indicated at 166.

The illustrative device 150 is proportioned and designed for snuglyholding a cylindrically shaped object. It will be appreciated that thisdevice may be formed by drilling a hole of the desired dimension throughthe upper plate, i.e., through the plate from which the plates 154, 156,158, 160 are cut, and, if desired, through the plate 152. Then, bymaking the two perpendicular cuts as indicated at 168, through the axisof the hole formed in the upper plate, the upper plate is divided intofour radially and resiliently expansible jaw sections.

It will be appreciated that each of the above-discussed devices 20, 20,20", 50, 80, 100, 130, 150 can be provided by taking a section of thecomposite bar 10 and then cutting the upper bar 12 of that section intoseparate jaw sections. In some cases, the resilient strip 16 of thecomposite bar section is cut to facilitate the receiving of partsbetween the jaw sections.

My holding devices and my methods for making the same will provide amachine shop with an ideal means for making special tooling formanufacturing relatively low quantities of parts. The resilientlymovable jaw sections which are provided by cutting the upper bar 12 of acomposite bar 10 section greatly enhances the holding characteristics ofthe devices. Further, the fact that I can so easily control the closingmovement of the jaw sections as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 is of greatadvantage in machining frail parts.

What I claim is:

1. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said first plate being splitinto a pair of separate portions, each of of which is resilientlyconnected to said second plate by said pad, said pair of portionsproviding jaws for gripping parts, each of said jaws being resilientlymovable relative to said second plate and relative to the other jaw.

2. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said second plate beingelongated and said first plate and said pad being disposed adjacent oneend portion of said second plate, a third plate disposed parallel to theopposite end portion of said second plate and on the same side thereofas said first plate, and a second pad of resilient material sandwichedbetween said third plate and said opposite end portion, said third plateand said opposite end portion being bonded to opposite sides of saidsecond pad, whereby the facing edges of said first and third platesprovide jaws for gripping parts.

3. The invention of claim 2 in which an edge of said third plate extendsoutwardly from the adjacent end edge of said oppositeend portion by apredetermined amount, whereby, when said device is placed in aconventional vise with the jaws of the vise arranged to close,respectively, on the ends of said second plate, the maximum amount ofmovement of said third plate toward said first plate by the vise isequal to said predetermined amount.

4. The invention of claim 3. in which anedge of said first plate extendsoutwardly from the adjacent end edge of said one end portion of saidsecond plate by a second predetermined amount, whereby, when said deviceis placed in such a conventional vise with the jaws of the vise arrangedto close, respectively, on the ends of said second plate, the maximumamount of movement of said first plate toward said third plate by thevise is equal to said second predetermined amount.

5.'The invention of claim 2. including means for drawing said first andthird plates together to grip a part disposed therebetween.

6 The invention of claim 5. in which said drawing means includes'atleast one threaded fastening element connecting said first and thirdplates.

7. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said first plate being cut intoa plurality of separate portions, each of which is resiliently connectedto said second plate by a portion of said pad, said plurality ofportions being formed to provide jaws for gripping parts, each of saidjaws being resiliently movable relative to said second plate andrelative to the other jaws.

8. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative move ment, at least a third and fourthrigid plate disposed parallel to said second plate, and a pad ofresilient material sandwiched between and bonded to each of said thirdand fourth plates and said second plate, said third and fourth platesbeing on the same side of said second plate as said first plate, saidfirst, third and fourth plates being formed to provide cooperating jawsections for gripping a part.

9. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said second plate beingelongated and said first plate and said pad being disposed to extendlongitudinally along one side portion of said second plate, a thirdplate disposed parallel to said second plate and extendinglongitudinally along the opposite side portion thereof on the same sideas said first plate and a second pad of resilient material sandwichedetween said third plate and said opposite side portion, said third plateand said opposite side portion being bonded to opposite sides of saidsecond pad, whereby the facing edges of said first and third platesprovide jaws for gripping parts.

10. The invention of claim 9 in which at least one of said facing edgesof said first and third plates is provided with a cutout adjacent oneend of said second plate to provide a resiliently expansible socket forgripping parts adjacent said one end.

11. The invention of claim 10 including threaded means for connectingsaid first and third plates, said threaded means being effective to pullsaid plates together to tighten said socket on a part.

lqlsligflsv ss mp isin a, firstri i P a eaus a second rigid plate, saidplates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilient materialsandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded to oppositesides of said pad, whereby said plates are resiliently connected forslight relative movement, said second plate being elongated and saidfirst plate and said pad being disposed adjacent one end portion of saidsecond plate, a third plate disposed parallel to the opposite endportion of said second plate and on the same side thereof as said firstplate, and a second pad of resilient material sandwiched between andbonded to said third plate and said opposite end portion, saidfirst-mentioned pad extending inwardly a predetermined distance from theinnermost edge of said first plate and said second pad extendinginwardly a predetermined distance from the innermost edge of said thirdplate, whereby, when a part is received between and in contact with thefacing inner edges of said pads and said first and third plates areurged toward each other, such a part will be engaged snugly and held bythe inner edges of said pads.

1. A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said first plate being splitinto a pair of separate portions, each of of which is resilientlyconnected to said second plate by said pad, said pair of portionsproviding jaws for gripping parts, each of said jaws being resilientlymovable relative to said second plate and relative to the other jaw. 2.A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said second plate beingelongated and said first plate and said pad being disposed adjacent oneend portion of said second plate, a third plate disposed parallel to theopposite end portion of said second plate and on the same side thereofas said first plate, and a second pad of resilient material sandwichedbetween said third plate and said opposite end portion, said third plateand said opposite end portion being bonded to opposite sides of saidsecond pad, whereby the facing edges of said first and third platesprovide jaws for gripping parts.
 2. A holding device comprising a firstrigid plate and a second rigid plate, said plates being generallyparallel, and a pad of resilient material sandwiched between saidplates, said plates being bonded to opposite sides of said pad, wherebysaid plates are resiliently connected for slight relative movement, saidsecond plate being elongated and said first plate and said pad beingdisposed adjacent one end portion of said second plate, a third platedisposed parallel to the opposite end portion of said second plate andon the same side thereof as said first plate, and a second pad ofresilient material sandwiched between and bonded to said third plate andsaid opposite end portion, said first-mentioned pad extending inwaRdly apredetermined distance from the innermost edge of said first plate andsaid second pad extending inwardly a predetermined distance from theinnermost edge of said third plate, whereby, when a part is receivedbetween and in contact with the facing inner edges of said pads and saidfirst and third plates are urged toward each other, such a part will beengaged snugly and held by the inner edges of said pads.
 3. Theinvention of claim 2 in which an edge of said third plate extendsoutwardly from the adjacent end edge of said opposite end portion by apredetermined amount, whereby, when said device is placed in aconventional vise with the jaws of the vise arranged to close,respectively, on the ends of said second plate, the maximum amount ofmovement of said third plate toward said first plate by the vise isequal to said predetermined amount.
 4. The invention of claim
 3. inwhich an edge of said first plate extends outwardly from the adjacentend edge of said one end portion of said second plate by a secondpredetermined amoUnt, whereby, when said device is placed in such aconventional vise with the jaws of the vise arranged to close,respectively, on the ends of said second plate, the maximum amount ofmovement of said first plate toward said third plate by the vise isequal to said second predetermined amount.
 5. The invention of claim 2.including means for drawing said first and third plates together to gripa part disposed therebetween. 6 The invention of claim
 5. in which saiddrawing means includes at least one threaded fastening elementconnecting said first and third plates.
 7. A holding device comprising afirst rigid plate and a second rigid plate, said plates being generallyparallel, and a pad of resilient material sandwiched between saidplates, said plates being bonded to opposite sides of said pad, wherebysaid plates are resiliently connected for slight relative movement, saidfirst plate being cut into a plurality of separate portions, each ofwhich is resiliently connected to said second plate by a portion of saidpad, said plurality of portions being formed to provide jaws forgripping parts, each of said jaws being resiliently movable relative tosaid second plate and relative to the other jaws.
 8. A holding devicecomprising a first rigid plate and a second rigid plate, said platesbeing generally parallel, and a pad of resilient material sandwichedbetween said plates, said plates being bonded to opposite sides of saidpad, whereby said plates are resiliently connected for slight relativemovement, at least a third and fourth rigid plate disposed parallel tosaid second plate, and a pad of resilient material sandwiched betweenand bonded to each of said third and fourth plates and said secondplate, said third and fourth plates being on the same side of saidsecond plate as said first plate, said first, third and fourth platesbeing formed to provide cooperating jaw sections for gripping a part. 9.A holding device comprising a first rigid plate and a second rigidplate, said plates being generally parallel, and a pad of resilientmaterial sandwiched between said plates, said plates being bonded toopposite sides of said pad, whereby said plates are resilientlyconnected for slight relative movement, said second plate beingelongated and said first plate and said pad being disposed to extendlongitudinally along one side portion of said second plate, a thirdplate disposed parallel to said second plate and extendinglongitudinally along the opposite side portion thereof on the same sideas said first plate and a second pad of resilient material sandwichedbetween said third plate and said opposite side portion, said thirdplate and said opposite side portion being bonded to opposite sides ofsaid second pad, whereby the facing edges of said first and third platesprovide jaws for gripping parts.
 10. The invention of claim 9 in whichat least one of said facing edges of said first and third plates isprovided with a cutout adjacent one end of said second plate to providea resiliently expansible socket for gripping parts adjacent said oneend.
 11. The invention of claim 10 including threaded means forconnecting said first and third plates, said threaded means beingeffective to pull said plates together to tighten said socket on a part.